Electricity is the motion of charged particles that create an electric charge. Early studies of electricity usually involved an electric charge that created some sort of light or arc. Ancient Greeks knew of electricity in the form of static when they rubbed objects against fur. When discharged, the static electricity would sometimes produce an arc. Perhaps the most documented historical event in this regard was when Benjamin Franklin, while studying lightening during a thunderstorm in his famous kite flying experiment, bridged the gap between lighting and static electricity. Studies such as these helped propel the theories in the minds of people such as Michael Faraday, Andre-Marie Ampere, George Sigmon Ohm, and Thomas Edison—inventor of the first commercially practical light bulb.
In order to power an electrical load element such as a light bulb, a circuit is needed to connect the electrical load element to a source of energy. A circuit consists of a number of electrical or electronic components connected by conductive materials. In order to power the electrical load element, the circuit needs a source of electrical energy such as alternating current energy, batteries, generators, etc. The circuit typically includes a switch, which controls the flow of the current, namely, it turns the electronic device on or off. The switch serves as a gateway to turning the electronic device on or off.
The earliest switch was simply the act of completing a circuit by connecting or disconnecting a wire. At its base form, a switch has two contacts that “close” to complete a circuit or “open” to disconnect the circuit. An example of an early switch is a lever switch, used by simply swinging a lever from the off position to the on position, or vice versa, to complete the circuit. These types of switches were used to power devices such as light bulbs to provide lighting in homes and businesses.
Electrical lighting provides more than just a utilitarian function. It is also used for aesthetic purposes. In the case of electronic devices such as a lighting fixture, attempts have been made and are being made to provide lighting devices that have not only a purposeful switch, but an aesthetically pleasing switch.
Today, conventional switches are of many varied configurations including the wall switch, the chain mounted rotary switch, dimmers, and the push button switch. However, each have their limitations in both utility and aesthetic qualities. Current methods for connecting or disconnecting an electrical load require one to engage the electronic fixture by touching the switch. For example, in order to turn the lights on in a room, one must engage a wall switch. To turn on a hanging light bulb in a basement, one must pull on a chain linked to a rotary switch. Known methods for connecting or disconnecting power to the light bulb do not allow one to engage the electrically-powered load element itself. The limitations of known methods will be discussed below.
The most common switch, the wall switch, is widely used in turning pendant or ceiling lights on and off in buildings. A wall switch is not located on the electrical device itself, but is place on the wall of a building in the general vicinity of the device. It is sometimes known as a “toggle” because it connects the circuit when toggled in one position, and disconnects when toggled in the opposite position.
A limitation with the use of a wall switch is that a single switch controls the supply of electricity to all lights in the circuit and as a result, all the lights must turn on or off together. It is difficult to turn on only one light bulb at a time on an as-needed or aesthetically pleasing basis. Using a wall switch, one would have to install a separate switch for each light bulb if that person only wanted to turn one light on at a time. Although it is currently a norm to have wall switches installed for lighting fixtures, many find it aesthetically unpleasant to have switches on walls as they hinder wall décor. Like many audio visual rooms found in schools and businesses, a separate switch for each light bulb could potentially lead to a wall full of switches which may detract from the aesthetics of a room. It is also difficult to find which wall switch engages which lighting element and as a result, one must engage each and every wall switch to find the correct light to engage.
A toggle switch attached to a light fixture may be used to remedy the problem of a wall full of switches, however, this device could not be a pendant or ceiling light, but must be a free-standing light fixture by its very nature. An attached toggle switch would allow one to turn lights on one at a time, however, the lighting fixture could not be a pendant or ceiling light simply because the attached toggle switch would be difficult to reach.
An embodiment of the current invention solves the problem of having to turn on all the pendant or ceiling lights in a room by allowing one to turn each hanging pendant light on or off independently without the use of unsightly wall switches or having to resort to free-standing light fixtures. This is made possible by the method of pulling on the pendant light fixture itself to turn the light on or off. One can possibly turn a single light on while leaving all other lights in the room off for purposes of ambience, for decreasing energy consumption, or for other utilitarian purposes in places such as a classroom.
Another version of an electric switch is simply the chain-mounted rotary switch found primarily in ceiling fans or on pendant light fixtures in a basement or closet. With these, one can turn a pendant or ceiling-attached electronic device on or off at its source, but not by pulling on the entire source itself. One must find the chain and pull on it to engage the switch. At times, finding the switch mechanism in a dark room can be a difficult challenge. The chain has been found to be unappealing and an annoyance. Currently, many ceiling fans are now using wall switches to control the fan, rather than these chain-mounted rotary switches because the chain has been found to be inconvenient. Pendant light fixtures with a chain mounted rotary switch have nearly been eliminated.
An embodiment of the present invention solves the problem of the annoyance of a chain on a chain-mounted rotary switch, but keeps the convenience of turning an electrically-powered load element on or off by pulling on the electrically-powered load element itself. It eliminates the chain and incorporates the switch mechanism with the device itself. It maintains the convenience of powering the device on or off by pulling on the device itself. One can simply pull on the electronic device, or an extension of the electronic device itself in order to turn the unit on or off. It would be easier finding the electronic device itself in a dark room, rather than a lone switch. Further, the pendant light would be aesthetically pleasing.
An embodiment of the present invention mechanically utilizes a push button switch in conjunction with a tension actuator bar and springs. Other versions of the present invention can use, but are not limited to, chain-mounted rotary switches, reed switches, wall mounted switches, dimmer switch, etc. The tension actuator bar is placed over the springs and push button switch and is balanced by stabilizing bars and bolts. The springs add resistance to the tension actuator bar in addition to the push button switch for smooth and reliable operation. Electrical wires are laced through the switch, tension actuator bar, and canopy to allow for the method of pulling the electrically-powered load element itself to turn the device on or off.